Welded coupling



Emmi. 24, 119@ W. W. VANDER CLUTE 2,495,@115

WELDED COUPLING Filed April 17, 1944 v 2 sheets-s eet 1 INVENTOR W/LL/AMl V. VA/VDER CLUTE,

Jana Z41" Wm W. w. VANDER CLUTE 2,495,615

WELDED COUPLING 2 sheets-sheet 2 Filed April 1'7, 1944 I3 INVENTOR M-W/LL/AM 14 l A/VDER CLUTE' I WMQ'A oRN atented Jan. 24, 1950WEIJDEDLCOUPLING ApplicationAprilfl3771944; .SKerialNo; 531331493:;Glaimsi; (Cl. 28'5:-10fi)1 Mycinvention relates to weld-edconnections be tween inetallicbodies carrying fluidsmnder pres sure,more particularly' to welded pipe--couplings and to the methodand systememployed for pro viding'. suclr couplings.

Failures of "Welded 'couplings' utilizing threadedconnections havebeen'quite commom This failure .ci'such fittings hasabeemattributett)*the--inability ofthesecouplings -to :v itl1stand*shoek; v-i---bration'; and relative motion betweenthe small pipingendimachinery-lunits on wlii ch thethread ed; Welded outlet fittings 1are" installed} Int-he usual type Of Welded -QutIetfitting, itis commonpractice-tornahe the fittings By pattern Where. for. a: lateral ornipple connectionto a header a; template; shaped t0"-th6-s94ddlliigshape of a pipe saddling 'anotlier; is placed on' -the header;. and; anaccurately" punched center line is" made around the outlineof thetemplate. Along-- this: line a mechanic flame cuts to produce-anegg-shaped hole in the headerpipe andthen the weilsurfaceofftheheader'around thehole' is filed andiground to a smooth surface.Also, themontacting pipe on'nipple has to be=ground Or-fitted" to.theshape-ofi'the header: After this the'lateral" pip :heldiin positionon the heederand vveldecl to the" header; This-'notonly-producesapo'orly shaped interior boreconnectio-n of the-pipe nippie? or: coupling: withv the header; but: making" a coupling: in. thismanner on large I pipes requires in many cases approximately fourhours-:for two" men for one weldedcouplingi Intheueuel Weldedcoupiing'it is practically' avery 'diffi'cult if"notimpossible-operation-to provide bothiirside and outside Welds: Suchinsideand outside-welds are-highly desirable for the purposeofi'strengthening the connection".

In the usualarrangement in the method described above proper seating ofthe fittings-ar coupling nienibersin the headerpipe is difficult toinsure; particularly wherethe so-called shoulder saddfing fitting-cannotb'eutilized; as in thecase of smallsize headers andfittings.

In the usual coupling-- niember' abrupt" angles areipresented to theflow of' fiuid or=liquid fromr theaheader into the connecting pipe atthe cou pling;

Itzis; therefore; an objectof' my invention to--- provide an improvedform of" Welded" connections"- and amethodand system forproviding-suchcon neotions- A further obj ect of myclnvent-ion istcprovides such as connectionrwhlch: is substantially immune: to: shockor: vibration: and incident 4 relative mor tion. oisthelpartszconneetech but zwhioh nevertlie- 55 2 less provides: an easy; quick:method-for accurate-- 1y positioning an outletcoupling- -in'relationtoes pressure vessel},or header piping With' which it is used? A stillfurtlierobject-*of my invention isto pro. vide :a: novel vmlded outletconnection in which the time for: makingthe l installation is substantially: reduced to e matter--of n'iinutesinstead f of hours.-

Arstillfurtlier 'obj ect ofimy invention is to pro vide-suc'h a couplingin wliich insideand outside Welds:aresiinultaneously: produced Withoutthe use of specie-l welding equipment;

Another object of my: invention is r to provide such.- a; couplihgadevice which is: preformed to properly: fit: a header-pipe :and which:is properly seatedfor: immediate welding operations when the apertureina the: header is simply and accurately formed for reception-ofthe'coupling inem ber:

Aifurthen-objectr of myeinvention isto provide such arcouplingimember.Which-insures the free flow'ofifiuid or liquidifrom the head'er: orvessel into; the coupling..'andftiie associated connected pipe.

Another objectz:offmy'invention is-to provide a coupling: membershaving: novel? positioning and reenforcnigsmeanstintegrallyassociatedwith the coupling:

These and: other objects will appear herein after The novel featureswhich I believe to be-characteristic' of.- mycinvention: aresct forth'with pa-rticularityiini the-appended? claims but the inven tion' itself:willi'bestibe understood by reference to: thee-following descriptiontakenin connectionwitii'the accompanying drawingin which Fig-UTE 1showsan exploded ViW= of" the elements useob in connection? with myinvention, Figure 2 i a longitudinaltsection ofithe part's in- -assemblyand made: according: to: my invention; Figure l 3 is" avieueQO?Witlnrespeetto Figure-l? of the coupling member"usediin' Figures l and2; Figure 4-is-a transverse section, talien along the line l-" l ofFigure; 3; Figure: 5 =-sl-ioWsa; modification of the coupling-shown inFigure; 3- and 1 made accordingto? mynnvention; l igure fi is:-a'transverse section taken. along: the: line; I -6 of Figure 6, andalsoshowing the-:meth odi ofj 'manufacture; Figure" 7' is;

I ailongitudinal sectiomoflw modification of the invention: showniirFi'guresL, and 2; Figure-8 is" a. still; furtherrmodification: ofwelded connection; made-according to my inventiong Figure 9"-showsiaelateraliconnectiommade'according sonny invention? Fi -Hres -10and- 1i1- show detailsoi-eonstruction of a connection made according toany invention and utilized for high pressure work, Figure 12 shows astill further modification of my invention intended for high pressurework and Figure 13 is a longitudinal section taken along the line 13-43of Figure 12.

Referring to Figures 1 and 2 of the drawing, the header pipe which couldalso be a pressure vessel is provided with an aperture 2| into which isfitted a coupling member 22 made according to my invention and providedwith the positioning stakes or stubs 24, the coupling member receivingthe connecting or distributing pipe 23. As shown in assembled form inFigure 2, the coupling member 22 is provided with a bore having flaredportions 25 and 26 to provide an inwardly directed flare, the diameterof the small portion 26 being coincident with the diameter of theconnecting pipe 23. The coupling is counterbored to provide a shoulder21, the connecting pipe 23 being received within the counterbore to reston the internal shoulder 21.

In order to insure inside welding or fusing of the coupling member 22,header 2!) and coupling pipe 23, I spray a silver alloy at the portions28 r and 29 of the coupling member, the diameter of the coupling member28 being slightly smaller than bore 28 in the header pipe and thecounterbore providing shoulder 21 being slightly larger in diameter thanpipe 23 to be received therein. It will be noted that the lower end ofthe coupling member 22 has a transverse contour coinciding with theinternal surface of the header 20. This may be formed by using a millingmachine of the proper diameter so that the inner surface of the header20 and the lower end of the coupling member 22 register with each otherwhen the two are placed in proper relationship with each other forwelding.

It is only necessary to drill a bore or aperture weld the internalcontacting surfaces of the header member 25, coupling member 22 and thepipe 23.

Instead of utilizing inserted pins, such as 24, in the coupling member,stakes or studs 24 integral with the coupling may be utilized as shownin Figures 5 and 6 at 24'. These positioning stakes may be made by aslide machine having the forming members 24" for forming the stakeorstud in the surface of the cou ling device 22. This avoids thenecessity for drilling apertures and inserting pins 24 as is the case inFigures 3 and 4. These pins or staked tips solve a troublesome problemof properly seating the couplings, which problem has been of longstanding.

at 90 intervals with respect to each other around the periphery of thecoupling member, The fiared bore comprising the cone-shaped sections 31and 38 smoothly merge into the walls of the pipe 42, the coupling member36 being counterbored to provide the shoulder 39 against which the endof the member 42 abuts. Welds 4| and 43 are provided, contacting wallsbeing welded together by silver alloy at 28' and 29' as in Figure 2. Theinner end of the coupling member is again preformed to register with theinner surface of the header 35.

In Figure 8 is shown another form of my invention utilizing lug-likepositioning elements and a saddle member utilized for high pressurework.

The coupling member 46 is provided with lugs 47, preferably positionedat 90 intervals around the coupling member. These lugs position thecoupling member in header 45, which is provided with an aperture forreceiving the inner end of the coupling member. A weld is then made at49. After the weld 49 is made the saddle 5| is positioned in place andwelded at 52 and 53 to the header and to the coupling member. Theconnecting pipe 48 may then be positioned within the coupling member andwelded at 52.

In Figure 9 is shown a lateral and the coupling device made according tomy invention for connecting the pipe to the header.

The header 55 is again provided with a bored aperture for receivingcoupling member 56, the inner end of which is provided with a flaredbore comprising portions 51 and 58, the walls of which register with theinner wall of the pipe 59 positioned within the counterbore havingshoulder 60. Stakes such as 6| on the coupling member position thecoupling member with respect to the header and welds are made at 62 and63 as shown. The silver alloy surfaces at 64 and 65 provide the internalwelds between the coupling member, the header and the pipe.

In Figure 10 is shown the type of coupling member used for high pressuredevices. Coupling member H is provided with an enlarged portion 12 so asto provide a shoulder 12 between the inner end of the coupling memberand the header ID. The member H may again be provided with the usualpositioning lugs or pins 13 and the weld made as at 14, the pipe 16being received within the coupling member 12 to which it is welded as at15, the shoulder, not shown, being in butting relationship with thereceived end of pipe 16.

In Figure 11 is shown a modification of the welded connection shown inFigure 10. This particular arrangement is again intended for highpressure work but the coupling member '1! having the enlarged portion12" is provided with a saddle-like shoulder 121. Otherwise thearrangements shown in Figures 10 and 11 are the same.

In Fi ure 12 I show still another form of welded connection madeaccording to my invention and intended for high pressure work. Here thecoupling member 8! is again received within an aperture in a header 8!].The bore 82 has somewhat the same shape as the bores in the other formsand receives within it pipe 83. Positioning lugs such as 84 and 85 inthe form of fins or vanes are spaced around the periphery of thecoupling member and may be made integral therewith during manufacturingso that the coupling may be handled as a complete unit when theconnection is made, the apertures 84' and 85' being provided to permitthe flow of welding material entirely around the coupling member. Theweld is pref-'- erably continued along the lug between the header tiland the coupling member 8|. The bottom of the lugs are shaped to conformto the outer surface of the header.

It is obvious that the welding ribs or fins 85 could be used in the highpressure form of the device shown in Figures 10 and 11. They can also beused successfully with all size pipes and couplings.

Thus I have provided a welded connection useful for both high and lowpressure usage, and which is of novel design, which is immune to shockand vibration and incident relative motion. I have provided a couplingwhich is easy and quickly positioned in registering relationship with aheader and with which the time for making the welded connections isreduced to a matter of minutes and in which outside and inside welds aresimultaneously produced, the coupling being properly and accuratelyseated as soon as inserted into the aperture in the header. The couplingis designed to insure a free flow of fluid or liquid.

While I have indicated the preferred embodiments of my invention ofwhich I am now aware and have also indicated only one specificapplication for which my invention may be employed,

it will be apparent that my invention is by no means limited to theexact forms illustrated or the use indicated, but that many variationsmay be made in the particular structure used and the purpose for whichit is employed without departing from the scope of my invention as setforth in the appended claims.

What I claim as new is:

1. A metallic coupling member for use under pressure and providing afused welded coupling between a hollow member having an aperture forreceiving one end of said coupling member and for engaging a metallictubular member at its other end, said coupling member having a boreextending therethrough, the end of said coupling member to be receivedwithin said aperture being formed to register with the internal surfaceof said hollow member, and a plurality of normally directed positioningelements on the exterior of said coupling member adjacent said one end,said positioning elements being oppositely disposed and lying along atransverse axis of said coupling member to engage the outer surface ofsaid hollow member and position said one end of said coupling memberwithin said aperture in registering relationship with the inner surfaceof said hollow member during welding operations, said positioning meanscomprising integral up-set lugs formed by upsetting material from thesurface of said coupling member.

2. A coupling member for providing a coupling between a first tubularmember having an aperture for receiving one end of said coupling memberand for engaging a second tubular member at its other end, said couplingmember having a bore extending therethrough, the end of said couplingmember to be received within said aperture being formed to register withthe internal surface of said first tubular member, and a plurality ofpairs of normally directed positioning elements on the exterior of saidcoupling member adjacent said one end, each pair of said positioningelements being oppositely disposed and lying along a transverse axis ofsaid coupling member to engage the outer surface of said first tubularmember and position the coupling member with its inner end within saidaperture in registering relationship with the inner surface of saidfirst tubular member, said positioning means comprising integral up-setlugs formed by upsetting material from the surface of said couplingmember.

3. A coupling member for providing a coupling between a hollow memberhaving an aperture for receiving one end of said coupling member and forengaging a tubular member at its other end, said coupling member havinga bore extending therethrough, the end of said coupling member to bereceived within said aperture being formed to register with the internalsurface of said hollow member, and a plurality of normally directedpositioning elements on the exterior of said coupling member adjacentsaid one end, said positioning elements being oppositely disposed andlying along a transverse axis of said coupling member to engage theouter surface of said hollow member and position the coupling memberwith said one end in registering relationship with the inner surface ofsaid hollow member, said positioning elements comprising two pairs ofintegral up-set lugs formed by upsetting material from the surface ofsaid coupling member, each pair of lugs lying along a transverse axis,the axis of one pair of lugs being disposed with respect to the axis ofthe other pair of lugs, said lugs being tangent to a line defined by theintersecting outside surfaces of said coupling member and said hollowmember when said coupling member and said hollow member are in engagingrelationship.

WILLIAM W. VANDER CLUTE.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,883,439 Adams Oct. 18, 19322,015,246 Taylor Sept. 24, 1935

